‘Inexcusable and nonsensical’: Letterboxd drama erupts as one of the greatest animated movies ever is excluded for the most pedantic reason imaginable

Letterboxd just updated its top 250 movie lists and users on the website were shocked to see that one beloved movie is gone. Its removal, and the possible reason for it, have had users up in arms, especially as people have started looking at the list more closely. 

Letterboxd is a film reviewing and tracking site that has grown widely popular in the last few years. Users online love to post and share their reviews of films they’ve seen and read other’s opinions as well, but they also love to see their favorite movies ranked and rated. However, a recent update saw the removal of a few movies from this list, one of which was Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion, and fans are not happy at all.

The End of Evangelion is a movie alternate ending for the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. Widely regarded as one of the best anime series ever made, Neon Genesis Evangelion had a very controversial ending, which led to the creation of The End of Evangelion. Despite how beloved the movie is, it was removed from the top 250 list, and one reason that was given was “so that viewers can finish this list without having to see a multitude of other episodes and films.”

This stuck out as bogus for a few reasons, and this isn’t the first time Letterboxd ratings have been abysmal for uniquely strange reasons. Firstly, exclusions like this render the list inaccurate as it no longer includes the top-rated movies on Letterboxd but rather the “top-rated standalone movies” list, or perhaps the “top-rated and easiest to watch through” list. The list promised to include the top rated “feature-length narrative movies” on the platform, and considering the End of Evangelion has an average rating of 4.5 stars, it’s safe to say that it deserves to remain on the list. 

Secondly, some movie sequels remained on the list such as The Human Condition Part II as well as the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. So, the preface of not wanting there to be a backlog of content to watch an entry on the list doesn’t hold up. 

Finally, End of Evangelion got a full theatrical release as a standalone movie and can be enjoyed as a singular (albeit weird) experience.

Which other iconic movies did not make the controversial Top 250 list?

Letterboxd published another list for movies that were once in the top 250, and The End of Evangelion wasn’t the only shocking entry on the list. An official reason wasn’t given for removing any of these films with the list only mentioning that they might have been documentaries, short films, or others. Some of the other movies that didn’t make the cut despite still being highly rated include La Commune (Paris, 1871), Once Upon a Time in America, and even Moonlight. 

While exclusions like stand-up specials, documentaries, concert films, and other “rarities” as they were referred to are valid enough, sequels and other kinds of movie installments clearly weren’t excluded and End of Evangelion’s exclusion is confusing at best.